New York City

Hello!
It's Raegan and Brandi and we just returned from a quick weekend get-away to NYC! We took Amtrak from Charlottesville to New York's Penn Station and stayed at the beautiful Le Parker Meridien Hotel. Amtrak is a fun way to travel and it's very nice to arrive in Penn Station right in the middle of Manhattan instead of having an expensive taxi ride in from one of the airports. If you travel in the summer we recommend a sweater as Amtrak keeps the air conditioning on full blast! We saw Annie on Broadway! This was a favorite childhood story so to see the Broadway show was really fun! We took a 3 hour walking tour of the September 11 Memorial, Wall Street and lower Manhattan. Next we took the Stage Door Tour of Radio City Music Hall. This was really interesting since we saw the Radio City Christmas Spectacular on a previous trip to New York. We went to the Top of the Rock - the Observation deck on top of Rockefeller Center. The views are amazing! In the evening we did a sunset harbor cruise around lower Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty. We have been to New York many times and find new exciting things to see every time!

Boston and Oregon

Hi, it's Jerry and I saw Paul Revere's House and Mt. Hood all in one trip! How is that possible? I just came back from a vacation where we started out in Boston and visited family and then we flew to Portland Oregon to visit the rest of my fanily. While we were in Boston we took the Freedon Trail tour where you will see the Old North Church and Paul Revere's house. The best way to see everything is to take a hop-on-hop-off bus tour. We flew on Jet Blue from Boston to Portland, I really like this airline and it was non-stop!! We went to Mt. Hood and it was snowing in June!!! We also went to the Air and Space museum and one of many vineyards in the area. We have been to Oregon several times. It is one of my favorite places and I'm sure we will go again.

Beaches Negril, Jamaica

Hello!
It's Raegan and in June my daughter and I went to Beaches Negril for her high school graduation celebration. We had a WONDERFUL time!! We flew from Charlottesville into Montego Bay and took the 1 and 1/2 hour shuttle ride to our resort. The resort and beach are beautiful and the sunsets in Negril are breathtaking! Beaches is part of the Sandals family and the service and food are outstanding! Our room was lovely and in a great centralized location. On day one we took an extremely long (3 hours each way) trip to Nine Miles, Bob Marley's home and final resting place. This was a bit of a disappointment. We are big reggae music fans and wanted to see Marley's home but the tour was only about 40 minutes long and very commercialized. The next day we went zip-lining. This was a first for me but definitely will not be the last time!! We had a blast!! We had a cabana on the beach the next day and spent a couple of hours shopping in Negril. The last full day we spent riding ATV's. It was very muddy as it was rainy season there but we had so much fun we didn't even mind getting dirty. Jamaica is one of my favorite islands and I can't wait to go back! I would highly recommend Beaches Resorts! This was one of the best Caribbean experiences I have ever had!

Ft. Lauderdale, Pompano Beach FL

Hey there!  Brandi and Meredith both spent time in Florida this year.  Ft. Lauderdale is a great weekend getaway denstitation with reasonably priced flights from this area and an array of hotels and resorts to choose from.  Ft. Lauderdale is known as the "Venice of America".  We took a canal cruise and really enjoyed it!

Enchantment of the Seas, Again!!!!

Hi, it's Brandi and January 2013!  I escorted a fundraising group on board the Enchantment of the Seas.  We sailed to the Eastern Caribbean from Baltimore.  While I had been on this ship before this was a different itinerary than last time.  We visited San Juan, St. Croix, Samana Dominican Republic, and Labadee, the private island.  This is a great idea for a fundraiser for any local charity you would like to support.  Each passenger makes a donation and Royal Caribbean matches the proceeds.  It was a great break from the winter weather!

Celebrity Reflection

Hi, it's Brandi again! 
In December I sailed aboard the newest Celebrity ship, Celebrity Reflection.  This was the inaugural sailing of the ship.  She is beautiful with lots of trendy lounges, such as the martini ice bar and the wine bar (one of my favorites).  This is the first experience I had with anytime dining and we loved it because we could dine whenever we wanted.  We also tried one of the beverage packages which worked out well for us.  Unfortunately it rained a lot and the ship was unable to port in Nassau Bahamas, lucky we had been there before.  We did get to visit the private island, Coco Cay Bahamas.  Celebrity is a little more upscale than their sister company Royal Caribbean.  I truly enjoyed the new ship!

Disney Cruise 2012

Hello! This is Meredith and my first blog as an agent here at Travel Leaders Harrisonburg. I have had a great 9 months here and am learning more and more every day. I worked in the airlines as a customer service agent before coming to the "other side" of travel. I must admit it is very different! My post is a little late....but I wanted to tell you about my first trip as a travel consultant.

My husband and I took our kids (4 and 6) on a Disney cruise and fell in love! What an exciting experience to have with our children. It was everything we expected and more. From the moment we stepped on the ship we were treated like royalty. The kids club was awesome as Jackson and Taylor said, they never wanted to come out of there! The food was spectacular and so much to choose from.  Jackson tried escargot for the first time and ate 3 servings! We ate the buffets for breakfast and lunch...which was perfect for us. I will say that we were given the late dining time and were very happy with  it. It gave us a chance to come in and rest  before dinner....we were able to go to the shows before we ate, which was nice. One suggestion I do have is to look at the daily schedule early and make a plan. The kids wanted to do so much...and we didn't have a good plan! Once we figured out what was happening when, we were all set. The fact that Disney made the soda fountain and ice cream self serve was a very nice added bonus. We were able to let the kids get their own without worrying how much it cost. Bring a travel mug....you will be glad you have a cup to fill up while at the pool.
We did western Caribbean, so we didn't get to visit the private Disney Island Castaway Key. We still had wonderful ports of call. Cozumel was our favorite, the snorkeling was amazing! At each port we found a cab driver to take us where we wanted to go, it worked out just fine.

If you are looking for the perfect vacation with your family....I highly recommend a Disney cruise. You will  be surprised how affordable it can  be.....and the quality relaxing time you get to spend with your kids is priceless!

Catching up!

Hello!
It's been another busy year at Travel Leaders! Our biggest news of the year is the addition of our new agent, Meredith. She joined the Travel Leaders team in July of 2012. That same month Raegan went on another trip to Bermuda aboard the Enchantment of the Seas. This was a repeat trip but one can never get enough of Bermuda!! FYI for those of you who have sailed from Baltimore before on the Enchantment of the Seas, the Grandeur of the Seas will be coming in May 2013 to replace the Enchantment so you might want to check her out!

Istanbul, Paris, and London – May 2012

Hi, it's Brandi and in May  I met up with a tour group I put together and my first stop was Istanbul, Turkey.  I was very excited to visit Turkey and it lived up to all my expectations.  I stayed at the City Center Hotel, great location, near Taskim Square.  Great shopping and restaurant areas, all within walking distance of our hotel.  The rooftop restaurants have amazing views of Istanbul.  The Horn is beautiful at sunset.  The second day we took a ferry to one of Princes’ Islands, the smallest of the islands and it was very quaint.  We had lunch and strolled through the town.  There are no motor vehicles on the island and everyone uses horse and buggy to get around.

Day Three – I took an organized tour with She Tours.  The tour is Two Continents – half day afternoon tour – Did you know Turkey occupies two continents; Asia and Europe?  We took the Bosphorus Bridge to the Asia side of Istanbul and visited the summer residence of Ottoman Sultans, the Beylerbeyi Palace, magnificent gardens.  We also visited Camlica Hill, the highest point in Istanbul.  At the top you can see panoramic views of Istanbul and the Bosphorus but unfortunately it was pouring down rain when we were there!

Day Four – We visited all the tourist hot spots like the Blue Mosque, HippoDrome, Grand Covered Bazaar, and Topkapi Palace.  All must see’s while you are in Istanbul!

We also found it very easy to use the underground and ferry system while we were in Istanbul.  With all the street vendors, you can get a snack anywhere you go.  The ekmek (bread) is wonderful. 

Off to Paris ….  The flight on Turkish Airlines was great with all the amenities you could want in coach class.

Paris has always been my favorite place to visit in Europe and it still is J ... The city of love.... what more can I say? I’m a romantic at heart!  We stayed at the Le Meridian Etoile  - great location and the largest hotel in Paris.  After we settled into the hotel we spent the reminder of the day on a riverboat trip down the Seine.  Touring Paris on the Seine is a great way to see many of the city’s monuments, historical buildings, and bridges.  The banks of the Seine were full of people picnicking and enjoying this beautiful city.  The next morning we took a tour of Paris and all the great monuments.  We spent the rest of the afternoon at Montmartre.  There was a food and wine event that day so we made our way through the festival, trying everything made in France.  I also had a crepe with Nutella, yummy.  The Eiffel Tower is amazing at night, a must see if you're in Paris!

The Eurostar then took us from Paris to London.  We stayed at the Royal National Hotel.  Not my first choice of hotel but it was adequate for what we needed.  Good location to hop on the Tube and go throughout London.  The pizza place in this hotel is great.  The London eye gives you amazing views of the city and is great for pictures.  We did a walking tour in London, which I loved, it is much better than being on a motor coach the entire time.  We visited the Tower of London, Big Ben and Parliament, and Westminster Abbey.  We had lunch at a traditional English Pub, fish and chips was a great choice.  Try a hard cider while you’re in London.  We left right before the Queen’s Jubilee weekend of celebration and the city was beautifully decorated.  Everyone in London is getting ready for the Olympics. This was a fantastic trip and I enjoyed it all!

Sandals Grande, St. Lucia

Hello everyone,
This is Jerry and I just came back from staying 7 nights at the Sandals Grande in St Lucia. There are 3 Sandals in St Lucia and when you stay at one you can visit all of them!!
The Grande is the largest of the three with the Sandals La Toc the next and the Halcyon the smallest. If you want to stay at a little more intimate resort you should pick the Halcyon. Sandals has shuttles that run throughout the day so you can go over during the day for the activities or do like I did and just go to one of them for dinner. The Grande is located on a peninsula on Rodney Bay with the Caribbean sea on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other.
The bay is very calm so there is little or no wave action. There are plenty of things to do there from the Hobie cat rides to Kayak to scuba diving to snorkeling. There are also two large peaks where Fort Rodney is located within walking distance that you can hike to, which I did one morning and I recommend you do in the morning because if gets very hot in the afternoon and take plenty of water with you.
The food and service  were great and the atmosphere was very laid back. I loved this resort and I would go back again in a heartbeat!

Carnival Victory Southern Caribbean

Hi!

It's Raegan and I've just returned from a 7 night Southern Caribbean Cruise aboard The Carnival Victory. We flew nonstop from Dulles to San Juan, Puerto Rico. We sailed to St. Thomas, Barbados, St. Lucia, St. Kitts and St. Maartin. The Victory is a very nice ship. The food was great and the activities aboard were endless. We especially enjoyed the Serenity adults only outdoor areas with the hottubs and hammocks. In Barbados we went snorkeling with the giant sea turtles and in St. Kitts we rode ATV's up into the mountians for spectacular views down to the sea. In St. Marten we rode a jet ski...what fun!! These are just a few of the many adventures we had on this vacation. Carnival is a great value and I can't wait for my next cruise!

New York City

Hello!

It's Raegan and earlier this month I visited New York City. We drove to Newark and, as an experiment, stayed at The Wyndham Garden Newark Airport. We took the train into the city each day. I was hoping to save a bit of money by doing this but the expense of the train and the inconvenience of not being IN the city were, in my opinion, not worth the savings. We took the hotel shuttle to Newark Airport. Then the airport tram to the train station. Then the New Jersey Transit Train into New York Penn Station ($12.50 each way per person) and then the subway to wherever we wanted to be so it was inconvenient, to say the least. It took about 90 minutes each way from hotel to final destination. Other than that hassle, though, the trip was fantastic. The weather was cool but clear and beautiful! We visited the 9/11 Memorial, Times Square and Rockefeller Plaza, Fifth Avenue, South Street Seaport, Brooklyn Bridge, Greenwich Village, etc. We ate yummy New York style pizza and cheesecake and shopped til we dropped (almost literally) we walked miles! I love New York and will continue to visit every chance I get!!

Disney Earmarked Conference and Disney Fantasy

Hi it's Brandi and I just returned from visiting Mickey again! I spent 2 nights at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort. This property is a moderate property that has a Southwest theme. This is the only moderate hotel with convention facilities. It is also the only moderate with a table service restaurant however I chose the quick service option and had great spicy fish tacos. I visited Magic Kingdom in the evening after my meetings and rode Pirates of the Caribbean and saw the light parade. Between the parade and fireworks they do a "Let the Memories Begin" slide/ laser show of photos submitted by this year's guests at Disney projected onto Cinderellas Castle. Next I went on the inaugural 3 night sailing of the Disney Fantasy. We had 1 day at sea and visited Disney's Castaway Cay, their private island. The Fantasy has all of the magical experiences of the rest of the Disney Cruise Line fleet such as rotational dining, fireworks at sea, amazing Disney deck parties and dedicated family night clubs as well as the fantastic children's programs. However The Fantasy has some different highlights from the other Disney ships like The Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, Draw Your Own Character in the Animator's Palate Dining Room and the show Aladdin. As always, Disney has exciting new activities at every turn. Like Mickey would say, "See ya real soon!"

Freeport, Bahamas

Hello! Jerry here!
I recently traveled on the new Vision Airlines from Richmond, VA nonstop to Freeport, Bahamas. I stayed for 2 nights at the Grand Lucayan Resort. I participated in the Dolphin Experience where you interact with the dolphins in the water. I toured several other resorts on the island and saw a wonderful dinner show. This is a great inexpensive option for a quick get-away.

Enchantment of the Seas Bermuda Cruise

In May, I, Raegan, sailed to Bermuda aboard Royal Caribbean's Enchantment of the Seas. This is one of their smaller ships but it is very pretty. The food and shows were great. This was my second time in Bermuda. We took the trolley bus around the island to Elbow Beach. This beach is spectacularly beautiful! We ate lunch in Hamilton at a neat little restaurant called Lobster Pot. We took the ferry back to the ship and then took a sunset cruise - very beautiful. The next morning we went deep sea fishing. This was my first time fishing ever and I caught the largest fish on the boat! I am hooked! Bermuda is a beautiful island and I can't wait to go back.

Catching up

2011 has been a busy year for Travel Leaders. We haven't traveled as much as usual and have unfortunately gotten behind on our blog. To catch you up, in January Brandi went to the Disney "Earmarked" Conference aboard Disney's newest cruise ship, the Disney Dream. This was an amazing ship, everything you'd expect from Disney and more, including AquaDuck, water coaster at sea and virtual protholes in interior staterooms and Crush the Sea Turtle joins you for dinner.
Next, in February Brandi went to St. Lucia, the Hawaii of the Caribbean, for her anniversary and stayed at the Windjammer Landing Resort for 2 nights and Sandals LaToc for 3 nights in a Water's Edge Butler Suite. Both resorts were great. The Windjammer caters to families while Sandals is couples only.
Finally, in April Brandi visited Daytona Beach, Florida for the first time. She stayed at The Wyndham on the beach. Daytona is a beach town. The beach is very wide and you can drive on certain sections of it. They went to the boardwalk and rode the ferris wheel and bumper cars.

Seattle, Washington

Hi! It's Raegan and in January we went to Seattle to visit friends. We flew on Airtran Airways from Washington Dulles to Seattle. We visited Pike Place Market and looked through litttle shops, crafts booths, flower markets and the famous fish markets. We had lunch at a restaurant called Crab Pot. They covered our table with brown butcher paper, put bibs on us and dumped two huge pots of shrimp, crab legs and other shell fish, potatoes and small ears of corn on the cob right on the table! We stuffed ourselves! This was a really neat restaurant not to be missed if you're ever in Seattle. The next day we took the Argosy Locks Cruise through Lake Union and saw the boat house from "Sleepless in Seattle". Then we went through the locks and into Puget Sound. We saw huge icebreaker boats from Alaska in drydock so you could see the blades that break up the ice. That was very interesting. We also saw sea lions. Our cruise ended at Pier 56 with amazing views of the Seattle skyline. Next we went to the top of the Space Needle. We went in late afternoon and stayed until dusk. The views were magnificent! That night we ate at a very beautiful restaurant called Ray's. The food was great and the ambiance was unmatched. We had a wonderful time with our friends enjoying this beautiful city. We plan to go back soon.

Princess Southern Caribbean Cruise

Hello Everyone! It's Jerry back from my Christmas Southern Caribbean Cruise! We flew from Washington Dulles to San Juan, Puerto Rico, picked up our cruise transfer and were on the Caribbean Princess by 1 o'clock! The ship didn't depart until 10pm so we had the rest of the day to use the pool, eat and relax and enjoy the almost 90 degree day. The first day of the cruise was a day at sea on our way to Barbados so most of the day was spent relaxing around the pool and watching movies on the large outdoor movie screen. The next day in Barbados we went on an island tour including a tour of the Mount Gay Rum and the Banks Beer Factories for half of the day and the rest was spent shopping. The third day we were in St. Lucia where we went on a catamaran ride along the coast the see the famous Pitons Mountains. The water was crystal clear and the Pitons were beautiful. Day four had us in Antigua and our excursion was a 12 station zip line through the rain forest, in the rain, but it was alot of fun and I would do it again. The next day in Tortola we took another island tour and I have to say that it is a very beautiful little island. We were in St. Thomas on our last day and I think St. Thomas and St. Lucia were my favorite stops on the trip. In St. Thomas we went on a jet boat ride and the driver of the boat said they were having a cold snap. It was 80 degrees! The last time I was on a Princess cruise was to Alaska and it was a lot quieter than this one was. This was Christmas break for the children in San Juan so there were a lot of large family groups but there were adults only areas and pools so the children were not really an issue. The food was great, the weather was great and I had a wonderful time! See you next time!

Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas

Hello! It's Brandi and I was invited to be on one of the Inaugural sailings for the Allure of the Seas. She is a sister ship to Oasis of the Seas but there are a few differences. The first difference is the partnership with Dreamworks on this ship and you see this influence throughout the entertainment. The broadway style show is "Chicago". This was my favorite show. The ice show was "How to Train Your Dragon", a Dreamworks production. The parade they have on the Royal Promenade incorporates many characters from the Dreamworks movies, such as Shrek, Kung Fu Panda, and Madagascar. Another change is The Boardwalk has a Mexican Cantina instead of a seafood shack. We had dinner at Chops Grill, the steakhouse aboard many Royal Caribbean Ships. The food was very good and the dessert was awesome. The Oasis class ships are amazing and a vacation in themselves. The Allure of the Seas is sailing alternating Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries. This is a vacation the whole family will enjoy!

Siesta Key, FL

Hi all! It's Brandi and I went on a girl's trip to Siesta Key, Florida. We flew into Sarasota and took a cab to Siesta Key - about a half hour's drive. Siesta Key has a beautiful beach with white powdery sand. There was a sand castle building competition going on while we were there. There are great places to dine. Some of my favorites are Blase' Cafe, The Broken Egg and the Hub Baja Grill. We spent most of our time lounging in the sun. This is a great weekend destination!